The Constructive Phase, 1920-40

The Obregón Presidency, 1920-24

The four years of Obregón's presidency (1920-24) were dedicated to
beginning to realize the objectives of the constitution of 1917. The
military phase of the Revolution was over, and the new administration
began to build the bases for the next stage of the revolutionary process
of reconstruction.

Obregón's choice for secretary of education was José Vasconcelos, a
distinguished lawyer and professor who had rejected the elitist
positivism of the científicos . Vasconcelos adapted the
curricula of rural schools to Mexican reality by teaching students basic
skills in reading, writing, mathematics, history, and geography. Seeking
to integrate indigenous peoples into Mexican society through education,
Vasconcelos dispatched hundreds of teachers to remote villages. Between
1920 and 1924, more than 1,000 rural schools and more than 2,000 public
libraries were established. Vasconcelos also believed in instructing
through images, and for that purpose he commissioned works by Mexican
muralists--foremost among them Diego Rivera--to decorate public
buildings while depicting important events in Mexican history and the
ideals of the Revolution.

Obregón's agrarian policies proved more traditional. He believed
that the Mexican economy could not afford to forego productivity for the
sake of radical agrarian reform. Consequently, redistribution of land
proceeded slowly. During his administration, Obregón redistributed 1.2
million hectares to landless peasants, a fraction of the eligible land.
Obregón was careful in handling Article 27 of the constitution, which
restricted land ownership by foreigners, because of fear of intervention
by the United States. Despite Obregón's moderation, United States oil
companies launched a campaign against the Mexican government, fearing
possible implementation of Article 27. A joint Mexican-United States
commission agreed to meet on Bucarelli Street in Mexico City in 1923.
Under the terms of the commission agreements, known as the Bucarelli
Agreements, Mexico upheld the principle of "positive acts."
Mexico agreed that if a foreign enterprise improved the land (in the
case of oil, by installing oil drilling equipment), the company's
holdings would not be nationalized. The United States fulfilled its part
of the agreement by recognizing the Mexican government.

When the time came for the next presidential nomination, Obregón's
choice was his secretary of interior, Plutarco Elías Calles. The
nomination met with strong opposition from landowners, who feared
Calles's radical reputation. Obregón succeeded in imposing his
candidate because Calles had the support of labor unions and Mexican
nationalists. Overall, Obregón's government disappointed the more
radical revolutionary factions, as well as conservative interests, such
as the military, wealthy landowners, and the Roman Catholic Church, but
it brought Mexico a welcome degree of political stability.